Walther UIT Standard Bolt Action Rifle

Walther built this rifle to meet Union Internationale de Tir
(UIT) or International Shooting Union (ISU) specifications for
international smallbore competition. The rifle meets the 11 pound
weight requirement and the 25.6 inch barrel provides a suitable
foundation for target sights.

Walther Waffenfabrik was founded in 1886 by German firearms
designer Carl Walther (1860 - 1915). The Walther family's
connection to firearms design and manufacture can be traced to
Matthias Conrad Pistor, chief armorer and gunsmith at Kassel
Arsenal during the 18th century. Pistor later opened his own
manufactory in the German province of Thuringia. This area, rich in
both natural resources and industry, became home to such noted
companies as both Walther and Sauer. Arms produced in the region
were used both in the German states and throughout Europe, with
some finding their way to North America, India, and Australia. In
addition, many gunsmiths, craftsmen, and artisans from this region
later relocated to eastern Pennsylvania, where they became involved
in the production of "Kentucky" long rifles.

In 1908, Carl Walther and his eldest son, Fritz designed and
manufactured the Model 1, which was the first successful German
pocket pistol to chamber the popular 6.35mm/ .25 Colt APC
ammunition. This pistol and its successors competed favorably with
other notable designs, including the Browning-FN Model 1905 and the
Colt .25 ACP. Father and son later designed and produced successful
police and military pistols in 9mm Parabellum and 9mm Kurz/.380
ACP. During the First World War, the company also produced the P-08
Luger pistol for the German armed forces.

After Germany's defeat in 1918, arms production was severely
restricted by the Treaty of Versailles. Walther turned briefly to
the production of optical instruments before returning to arms
manufacturing under special permit from the League of Nations.
Among the firearms produced during this period were the Model 8 and
Model 9 Pocket Pistols, as well as sporting rifles and shotguns. In
1929, the Walther PP became the world's first commercially
successful double-action auto pistol. This was followed in 1931 by
the smaller PPK. Both of these pistols found favor with European
police departments and, later, with German military officers and
members of the Nazi Party.

The company also produced the successful Olympic Model .22 pistol,
which became the standard among competitive pistol marksmen. By
1936, Walther had produced its one millionth pistol, and was poised
to embark on a new era in its history. Having come to power in
1933, Adolf Hitler sought to rebuild Germany's military apparatus.
German ordnance officers sought a replacement for the P-08 that was
simpler in design and easier to manufacture. In 1937, Walther
introduced the HP, a double-action 9mm Parabellum pistol that was
later adopted as the P-38. By the end of the Second World War, over
one million P-38s had been produced, many of which were "liberated"
by American troops and carried in preference to U.S.-issued
sidearms. In fact, the P-38 was so popular that during the Battle
of the Bulge, German officers ordered that any captured G.I. with a
P-38 in his possession was to be shot!

Walther also produced the Gewehr 43 and Kar. 43 gas-operated
semi-automatic battle rifles during this period to provide German
troops with an equivalent to the American M1 Garand and Soviet
Tokarev semi-auto rifles. As the war progressed, Allied bombs fell
in greater numbers on German industry. Amazingly, the Walther plant
survived the war intact, and was occupied by American troops in
April 1945. By June 1945, Zella-Mehlis, the home of Walther
Waffenfabrik, had become a part of the Soviet Occupation Zone, and
the Walther factory was dismantled and machinery was moved to the
Soviet Union. Fritz Walther escaped to the American Zone, and
within a few years had established new factories in Ulm, West
Germany. In addition to resuming production of the PP, PPK, and
P-38 pistols and sporting rifles, Walther entered into an agreement
with the Swiss firearms manufacturer Hammerli to produce the
Olympia .22 pistol. In 1993, Walther merged with Umerex Sportwaffen
GmbH & Co. KG.